Copyright
Copyright law in the United States can be a difficult concept to understand. The Pennsylvania Center for the Book, in its mission to "study, honor, celebrate, and promote books, reading, libraries, and literacy" in Pennsylvania , has created this guide to aid in your understanding of copyright.
What is copyright?
When a work, such as a book or an illustration, is said to be copyrighted, or under copyright, it can only be reproduced, copied, or substantially revised by the institution that published or owns it. Copyright protects not the raw ideas and facts in a work but the creative and unique way the author expresses and arranges them.
When is permission to reproduce copyrighted material not required? When do you need to obtain permission?
There are three concessions, or special allowances, made to the public that allow for the reproduction of otherwise copyrighted material: fair use, first sale, and limited time.
Have you ever made a copy of an article for a homework assignment or research project? This is a common act that is allowable under the concession of Fair Use. Fair Use means that you can make unauthorized copies of copyrighted materials if you are going to use those copies for "protected purposes." Criticism, commentary, giving examples, journalistic reporting, and education are all protected purposes.
Have you ever made a "mix CD" that includes songs off your favorite compact discs? This is a very popular activity, and it is allowable under the concession of First Sale. First Sale means that you may reproduce parts of a copyrighted item if you physically own that item. If you buy a book of poetry and then make copies of your favorite poem for all of your friends to read, you are protected under the concession of First Sale.
Have you ever noticed that there are a lot of different copies of Shakespeare's plays, or that books written a long time ago can be republished? Copyrights are granted for a limited time in the United States , which means that after a set number of years, a copyrighted item will no longer be copyrighted and will become public domain. Public domain is a term used for works that are not owned by anybody; the public "owns" these texts and can freely use them without obtaining permission from the authors.
You should seek permission if your reason for reproducing copyrighted material does not fall within the bounds of fair use, first sale, or public domain. Also, certain uses of copyrighted material always require permission, such as using a portion of a work in a course pack or an e-reserve for a class or reproducing a photograph, chart, graph, map, or other illustration.
The world of copyright law is incredibly complex, but if you keep in mind the three basic concessions, you might not have to investigate that complicated world.
Need to know more?
If you need more information on copyright law in the United States, consider consulting a copyright lawyer or the following Web sites.
• An excellent introduction to copyright from The University of Chicago Press.
http://www.press.uchicago.edu/Misc/Chicago/copyright.html
• The Association of American Publishers' Copyright Resources page provides the intellectual property owners' perspective on copyright and some tips on obtaining rights and/or permission to reproduce copyrighted works.
http://www.publishers.org/main/Copyright/copyPermission_01.htm
• The University of North Carolina has prepared a chart to explain when a work passes into the public domain in the United States.
http://www.unc.edu/~unclng/public-d.htm
• The Copyright Clearance Center 's Copyright Education page features tools, in-depth resources, and current articles and reports to help you better understand your responsibilities under copyright law. It also provides guidelines for registering your works.
http://www.copyright.com/ccc/do/viewPage?pageCode=cr100-n
• The United States Copyright Office at the Library of Congress provides sections on Copyright Basics, How to Search Copyright Records, How to Register a Work, and Law and Policy, among others.
http://www.copyright.gov/
• The Copyright Kids provides an excellent, jargon-free discussion of copyright issues for all ages to understand. It is produced by the Copyright Society of the U.S.A. and hosted by the Duke University Law School.
http://www.copyrightkids.org
• Georgia Harper's Crash Course in Copyright , which is hosted by the University of Texas , is designed to teach you the basics of copyright. It includes an in-depth explanation of fair use and how to figure out "who owns what."
http://www.utsystem.edu/ogc/intellectualproperty/cprtindx.htm
• The American Library Association's Washington Office Copyright Resources page offers the library world's view of the current copyright debate.
http://www.ala.org/ala/washoff/woissues/copyrightb/copyright.cfm
• What is copyright protection? explains the basics of copyright law and the issues and debates surrounding it.
http://www.whatiscopyright.org
• The Copyright Website includes summaries of well-known court cases involving copyright laws. Visual, audio, and digital cases are some of the copyright topics on this site.
http://www.benedict.com
• Creative Commons provides free tools that let authors, scientists, artists, and educators easily mark their creative work with the freedoms they want it to carry. You can use CC to change your copyright terms from "All Rights Reserved" to "Some Rights Reserved."
http://creativecommons.org/
• Find out more about what copyright means to you as a student in UCLA's Bruin Success with Less Stress tutorial on Intellectual Property.
http://www.library.ucla.edu/bruinsuccess/